Would NC State Pledge Consider Terps, Others?

Dave Lomonico

04/26/2016

The Terps offered CB Chris Ingram April 25.

Maryland has one 2017 cornerback commit in tow, but the Terps are looking to add about three more to its crop before Signing Day. While UMD is positioned for a couple local corners, Carolina-area recruiter Walt Bell identified another potential candidate April 25 during a trek down south.

Bell stopped by Mooresville Senior (Mooresville, N.C.) and let the head coach know he wanted to offer defensive back Chris Ingram, who has been committed to N.C. State since last July.

“That was an interesting offer for me,” said Ingram, who also holds verbals from the likes of Clemson, Duke, ECU and North Carolina, with interest from programs throughout the SEC. “I didn’t meet Coach Bell, but I know he was here and talked to my coach about me. My coach told me to give him a call, so I did, and [Bell] said the coaches watched my film and liked what they saw. He said he knew I was committed to State, but wanted to offer me anyway.

“He didn’t want to pressure me into decommitting or anything like that, but he thought my talent would be a great fit at Maryland. [Bell] wanted me to know that if anything changed with my situation at State, he wanted me to keep Maryland in mind.”

And what did the 6-foot, 175-pound Ingram think of Bell’s pitch?

“I was definitely honored by the offer,” Ingram said. “I will keep [the Terps] in mind. I mean, you never really know what can happen.”

Ingram admitted, however, that he hasn’t studied the UMD program, nor does he know much about the new staff or the changes in College Park, Md. At this time, he is not considering a trek north. If he does eventually check out Maryland, Ingram said it would probably be later on for an official visit.

“Right now I’m still committed pretty hard to N.C. State. They are basically my family,” Ingram said. “I’m up there a lot, and I go there as often as I can. It would take some real thinking, seeing a campus, getting to know a new staff, and seeing how a team performs on the field this year for me to decommit. So right now I’m not thinking about visits or officials to other schools.”

That said, Ingram did admit two of his more recent offers have caught his eye. In fact, the Mooresville product hinted it “should be interesting” as he gains steam on the trail.

“Definitely Clemson caught my eye. They’ve done some big things in the ACC, and I saw their rise coming. That one caught my eye,” said Ingram, who has visited the likes of Duke, UNC, and ECU, in addition to NC State, recently. “And North Carolina, I grew up a Tar Heels fan and watched their program build up. They’ve really improved, and I’ve been there a few times already.

“So if I were to look around at other schools, it would probably be those two, but right now I’m not looking.”